Customers often purchase products from retailers over the internet. Generally, the products purchased by a customer are delivered to a physical address provided by the customer, for example, a home where the customer lives, or an office where the customer works. Typically, the products ordered by customers of a retailer are loaded (in some cases, on a first in, first out basis) into a delivery vehicle of the retailer (or a delivery service used by the retailer) and delivered one by one to each customer's designated delivery location (e.g., home). Often, after the operator of the delivery vehicle arrives at the delivery destination, the operator is required to search the cargo area of the delivery vehicle for the package that is to be dropped off, which wastes valuable time for the delivery service operator.
Product delivery using unmanned vehicles is also becoming a popular idea. The unmanned vehicles are typically loaded with the product to be delivered, deliver the product to its intended destination, and return to its deployment station/vehicle to be loaded with the next product. However, such one-by-one delivery of products and the return of the unmanned vehicle to its deployment station after each delivery is inefficient from a time and cost of operation standpoint for the delivery service, which is likely to pass the cost to the retailer.
Elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions and/or relative positioning of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of various embodiments of the present invention. Also, common but well-understood elements that are useful or necessary in a commercially feasible embodiment are often not depicted in order to facilitate a less obstructed view of these various embodiments of the present invention. Certain actions and/or steps may be described or depicted in a particular order of occurrence while those skilled in the art will understand that such specificity with respect to sequence is not actually required. The terms and expressions used herein have the ordinary technical meaning as is accorded to such terms and expressions by persons skilled in the technical field as set forth above except where different specific meanings have otherwise been set forth herein.